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CPAG: Demonstrations against the Cyprus banks

MANY buyers in Cyprus have been deceived into buying properties by developers who have withheld the vital fact that there are mortgages on the land on which these properties are built.

If buyers had been informed of the presence of these mortgages then most, if not all, would not have purchased these properties. This deception has only been possible due to the buyers’ own lawyers failing to provide a duty of care to their clients by not even warning them of the risks of this situation.

Finally, the banks involved have effectively made these buyers the ultimate guarantors of these developer mortgages without their permission or even knowledge. Should the developer go bust the buyers will be faced with paying off these mortgages. If a buyer is unable, the banks can repossess their property and auction it to recover their loan to the developer.

There is no doubt that the banks and their unethical practices are at the root of the major risks buyers in Cyprus currently face. Just as the behaviour of banks worldwide have been the cause of so much damage to the economies of many countries the banks in Cyprus have set up a scenario that will do so much damage unless the Government acts quickly and decisively.

Unfortunately, the risks taken are now coming home to roost due to the current global financial crisis. The Central Bank has recently accused the banks of attempting to hide the problematic debts of hundreds of developers by restructuring the loans instead of properly reporting these bad debts; which if properly reported could affect the share price and credit ratings of the banks.

Many worried buyers have now found out from the Land Registry that their developers have mortgages on their homes and as a result cannot transfer the Title Deed. What they don’t know is the current extent of these loans as banks mostly refuse to discuss this, claiming client confidentially, unless of course the developer is in real trouble and the bank is looking to the buyers for reimbursement.

Accordingly, the Cyprus Property Action Group (CPAG) is starting a series of demonstrations against banks to press for full disclosure to buyers of developer account balances on loans encumbering their homes.

'Lazy' lawyers are definitely a problem. I suspect in most instances they are not 'malicious', but simply 'can't be bothered' to do all the necessary checks and follow-ups. Because they have absolutely no interest in that type of work and adopt the stance that 'everything will happen in its own time' without their intervention.

I don't excuse that behaviour and I fervently believe that if they are paid to protect their clients' rights, that is exactly what they should be doing.

I suspect the same Cypriot lawyers who (for example) successfully took the Cypriot Police to the European Court of Human Ruights - and received judgements against them - would be willing to take non-performing Cypriot lawyers to court here. I'm not suggesting they are in the majority, but I believe they do exist.

I don't want to tar all lawyers with the same brush - it's just that 99% of them give the rest of them a bad name.

But seriously, I have met and/or spoken with a number of the lawyers on the list provided by the British High Commission in Nicosia - and I agree with you, there are good lawyers about who will do a proper job.

It's unfortunate that the good guys don't do something about their deceiving brethren. It seems the only people who want to change things for the better get labelled as 'Whinging foreigners' - it's about time Cypriots started rattling the cages.

Regards,

Posted by lime-676998 - 9 years ago

"Don't you think these people have a right to know what they may be liable for?"

Nigel, these people do have 'a' right, perhaps mirroring some kind of an ethical obligation of the banks, but they do not have 'the' right to such the information.

I do feel very disturbed by the situation and I do believe that various aspects of the law must change (on the other hand, I thought the same thing throughout the last decade...). However, I do also believe that there are better uses for one's time than in front of a bank, asking for something no bank can deliver.

As for lawyers not suing lawyers, I beg to differ. I had an opportunity to speak with a number of partners of prestigious law firms and most of them feel sickened by the current system where lawyers do not penalize each other for mistakes they've made. Give them enough monetary incentive and the bauble is bound to burst. I also do know that some of these law firms had nothing to do with the deceptions practised by their brethren, so they would have little to loose if Cyprus legal market was to be made a little less diversified.

A lot of pressure is being brought to bear on the Government to resolve the issue. You may have read statements in the press from the Interior Minister, Neoclis Sylikiotis, about the Title Deed reforms.

As you say, it is up to the government - whether they'll be able to remains to be seen. They still have a long way to go.

Regards,

Posted by soudas - 9 years ago

Good on nigel for starting this debate.

I fully support Nigel in his demonstration at the banks as they have provided the money - to the developers to create a bubble that has to burst

Posted by achilleas - 9 years ago

I meant the real people responsible.

Posted by achilleas - 9 years ago

I believe it is worthless demonstrating outside a bank - they can't do what you want because they will be breaking numerous laws - both Cypriot and European.Go against the real people - the developers and the government.

One of the problems Achilleas is that these people have hired lawyers to undertake the conveyancing, but those lawyers have not done their job properly - and if you think you'll be able to get a lawyer to sue another one in Cyprus, think again. No lawyer here has ever sued another lawyer.

And if you can't trust a lawyer in Cyprus to do a proper job, who can you trust?

There is one lawyer in Paphos who, according to my mole in Nicosia, is facing five charges in front of the Bar Association's Disciplinary Committee next year. All that lawyer will get is a slap on the wrist (and I have that from a very high authority who has spoken with the Bar Association about this particular lawyer).

The people who have been deceived into buying mortgaged property by various crooks masquerading as property developers and lawyers are ultimately the guarantors for these mortgages.

The Land Registry can provide them with a search certificate showing mortgages on the land (I have one in front of me now showing a mortgage of nearly €3.5 million).

But that €3.5 million is the amount of the mortgage when it was registered with the Land Registry more than five years ago. Only the banks have the information on the current amount outstanding - and we know that the banks have been restructuring these loans to avoid them having to be classified as 'Non-Performing' as required by the Basel II accord.

Don't you think these people have a right to know what they may be liable for?

Regards,

Posted by achilleas - 9 years ago

I believe that "lime" is right about this. To disclose such information would be against multiple data protection laws, so in effect you are asking the bank to do something else illegal - not logical and it aint gonna happen."Buyer beware" is a well known saying.Before purchasing a property, why not hire a lawyer to check this and give you a report about the developer and the land or property you are about to buy. If the lawyer reports that there is nothing wrong, and in the future there is, then you can take legal action against the lawyer.